Don’t Look for the Resurrected Villainess - Chapter 10
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 10
At this level, it wouldn’t look like we were having a conversation. The wolf stared at me intently, then growled softly.
[This weak male is a member of my pack. The leader must protect the pack.]
“Wait, miss! It’s dangerous to get so close!”
The man was horrified and pulled me away as I unhesitatingly brought my face close to the wolf’s head.
However, I couldn’t take my eyes off the wolf. Hearing the wolf’s unwavering gaze and that resolute answer made me want it even more. I’m really confident I could raise it well.
“This wolf isn’t suitable to be raised as a pet for a noble lady.”
A word that grated on my ears reached me as I was captivated by the wolf. Frowning, I turned my gaze to see the man staring at me with a stern expression.
“It’s also inadequate to accompany a precious Resurrected One.”
Oh my. It seems this wasn’t just some harmless stray cat.
“I think there’s been some misunderstanding.”
“From your attitude, it doesn’t seem like you were kidnapped. Let’s pretend we never met here and go our separate ways.”
Only then did I look over the man’s attire again instead of answering. At first glance, it appeared ordinary.
He seemed to have spent quite a long time on the road, as his clothes were worn and stained with dust. The embroidered pattern at the edge of his cloak was faded and looked ready to disappear at any moment.
But just from those traces, I could identify who he was. He was someone who had no choice but to recognize me.
“You’re from the Mage Tower.”
If that’s the case, wanted posters and crystal orbs would have been circulated long ago. However, the Mage Tower didn’t get along well with the Temple and was a group that showed little interest in political conflicts.
So I could understand his attitude of wanting to remain indifferent toward me. Above all, this man would want even less to get involved with me. Judging by his appearance, surely…
“You’re in the middle of a trial pilgrimage.”
I had heard that trial pilgrimages were a process where mages sealed their magic power and wandered the world with their bare bodies to strengthen their physical form.
It was a training schedule established by the Mage Tower to compensate for the weakness of mages who were heavily dependent on magic power. This was the first time I’d met a mage undertaking such a practice.
A mage with sealed magic power was no different from an ordinary person. For anyone who held a grudge against him or had something to gain, this would be an unmissable golden opportunity.
Considering the value an individual mage possessed, this man would also try to avoid drawing attention as much as possible during his pilgrimage.
At my words, the man ruffled his hair as if troubled.
“There’s no point in both of us making excuses, so let’s reach an agreement quickly. Neither of us would benefit from causing a commotion. Let’s just pretend we don’t know each other.”
“While it’s true that we both want to avoid commotion, our situations aren’t the same.”
“Pardon?”
“Those looking for me are people who would treat me preciously, but that wouldn’t be the case for you, would it?”
At my words, the man seemed at a loss for words and hesitated. However, he narrowed his brow and ultimately shook his head.
“…Even if you say that, I can’t give you this wolf.”
“I’ve changed my mind.”
The man looked at me with suspicious eyes. Watching him, I felt the hunger I had momentarily forgotten surge back.
Since he said he couldn’t abandon a pack member, then I just needed to keep that member by my side.
Moreover, I was terribly hungry right now and needed someone to cook for me immediately.
Someone who had become accustomed to various tasks through a wandering lifestyle.
“I want to buy you.”
“…Me?”
“Yes.”
I nodded with a bright smile.
“As you mentioned, I’m currently on a pilgrimage. I can’t perform my role as a mage.”
“What I want from you isn’t that kind of thing. From what I can guess, your pilgrimage period has been long, so you must have become accustomed to wandering life. But you’ve probably spent most of your travel money.”
Even if long-term companionship would be difficult, it would be useful until I could overcome the current situation and find a way out.
“But right now, I need exactly someone like you.”
Someone who doesn’t want to get involved with me and would keep a low profile to avoid commotion as much as possible.
“Taking care of the wolf’s food would be quite a burden, so come earn some money by my side.”
The man remained silent, but his golden eyes were wavering. Seeing that, I was convinced once again.
That this person was more suitable than anyone else.
* * *
Once I found a place to settle, I had something I needed to do first.
That was to hire a reliable handyman.
How wonderful it is to have someone by your side who can do things I cannot do. Especially in such harsh conditions.
The man accepted my short-term employment offer, and I paid him an advance. When I promised to give him double the advance when the work was finished, he could no longer object.
The Righteous Wolf was quite satisfied that the man had agreed to help me, even if it was because of the deal.
I resolved to do my best to win over that wolf until our companionship ended, because no matter how many times I looked, it was difficult to give up.
Unable to stay at lodging in the village because of the wolf, we ended up camping on the first day we met. But it was fine.
He seemed skilled at camping, and I had sufficiently prepared camping equipment that money could buy. Including food ingredients.
All the luggage was loaded onto the pack horse that the man led around. I would have liked to buy a horse too, but that wasn’t possible in a rural village.
Even if I had bought a horse, it was questionable whether it could have been properly controlled because of the wolf accompanying us.
“To think that the Resurrected One who threw herself at monsters to save citizens was this kind of person…”
“How could a mere human fathom the will of the gods? Instead of dwelling on useless things, think more productively.”
I replied without even glancing at him and examined the map as if I intended to memorize it. I particularly memorized the terrain of the forest we planned to enter in detail.
The man who confirmed the area I was looking at spoke with a sigh-laden voice.
“Must we go that way? Wild animals frequently appear in that area. If we’re unlucky, monsters might show up too.”
“It has to be a route with little human traffic. I also said I’d provide separate hazard pay.”
“If it weren’t for that hazard pay, I wouldn’t be cooking here either.”
We had already finished our meal. The stew he had simply made as a demonstration was truly excellent, and I had just given unstinting praise to my judgment in hiring him.
“Yes, fortunately your cooking skills are quite outstanding. But what should I call you?”
“You’re asking rather early.”
At the somewhat grumpy muttering, I glanced up to see the man looking at me with a displeased expression. I also caught a glimpse of disappointment directed at me in his eyes.
Why?
“If you’re not going to tell me your real name anyway, what’s the point of politely exchanging names?”
“Why do you think I wouldn’t reveal my real name?”
I hesitated at the man’s question. It was strange that he was asking something so obvious. I folded the map and answered firmly.
“Because you wouldn’t want to get involved with me.”
That was probably the correct answer. Even I thought I was currently at the center of a whirlwind of chaos, the source of all conflicts and incidents. Or a being destined to become the source.
No matter how friendly we might be, all you’d get would be a dangerous object that could explode at any moment. Even I wouldn’t want to exchange names with such a troublemaker.
“You’re making me out to be someone without blood or tears.”
“Not particularly. I was just thinking rationally.”
It’s not even a difficult problem to consider.
At my response, the man clicked his tongue as if somewhat fed up.
“I never thought I’d learn of Roam’s reputation this way.”
Roam. Yes, Roam taught such things. Quick and swift judgment. Exclusion of emotions. Gains and losses. Various things. I don’t deny that my birth created my current way of thinking. However.
“…I’m no longer a child of Roam.”
They abandoned me, and I no longer look to Roam either. At my answer, the man raised his eyebrows and said.
“Haven’t you heard the news? The Duke of Roam declared that ‘the missing person is a precious daughter who carries Roam’s blood before being a Resurrected One’ and announced he would send search parties throughout the territory.”
“Ha, precious daughter.”
Since when did these words become so disgusting.
I twisted my lips and turned my gaze away. After my bedridden mother, now my father had declared he would search for me?
I could too clearly imagine what words were exchanged in father’s study, what expressions and thoughts there were.
Mother would have been troubled, sister would have been annoyed. Father would have been displeased, and my younger sibling would have just read the mood or might not have been there at all. And Lilia, who had newly become a daughter of that house…
Ah, I shouldn’t think about it.
“They’re forming search parties after how long since the supposed kidnapping.”
When I muttered indifferently, the man clicked his tongue and chimed in.
“Everyone’s making position statements.”
It was content I had sufficiently expected, but hearing it was actually amusing. Do they think I would cooperate obediently if they found me? Do they all think I’m accepting this resurrection devoutly and joyfully?
No, they probably aren’t even considering my feelings in the first place. Because they’re that kind of people.
“For someone on a wandering pilgrimage, you’re well-informed about news.”
“We’re not thrown out completely bare-handed. We at least carry one communication device.”
My gaze must have unconsciously sharpened. The man flinched and quickly avoided my eyes.
“You don’t need to look at me like that. I just casually ran my mouth and don’t want to get unluckily caught up in politics.”
He repeatedly emphasized that he truly had no intention of revealing my whereabouts. Even so, when my expression didn’t easily soften, he began complaining to the wolf that was lying leisurely by the campfire.
He probably wasn’t expecting the wolf to respond in kind. He was simply looking for a place to air his grievances.
However, the wolf subtly took his side for the sake of the man who couldn’t even understand what it was saying.
[This male is too weak to lie. He’s surprisingly a male you can trust to watch your back.]
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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